


The Loyal Bear and the Cunning Owl

by PlatinumSoul



Category: Vinland Saga (Anime)
Genre: Background angry teen, Canon Divergence, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Slice of Life, Vikings softer than they actually are, a touch of angst, lots of banter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-18 07:53:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21840808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PlatinumSoul/pseuds/PlatinumSoul
Summary: A few years had passed since Bjorn had met Askeladd, but more often than not these days he kept discovering more about him...Then today happened, making it even harder to grasp exactly what was Askeladd's true character. Maybe it was pointless to try and figure him out, the probability of succeeding this soon weren't high at all.
Relationships: Askeladd/Bjorn (Vinland Saga)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 46





	The Loyal Bear and the Cunning Owl

The starry night sky enveloped Bjorn like a warm blanket, shielding him from the biting cold of the icy northern winds. His luck was such that a sliver of snow fell unceremoniously on top of his nose as soon as he stepped outside. It was cold enough that he was able to see his breath, and quiet enough to hear the laughter inside the house he had just left. It wasn't too unusual for him to wander off on his own so none of the other guys thought of bothering him with nonsense, he was thankful for it. On a nearby tree, Bjorn was sitting down with his hands behind his head, contemplating something that had happened earlier that day. 

It was an unwritten rule in the crew that whenever a battle started, each man was left to fend for themselves, so they shouldn't expect any help from others. That was broken by Askeladd, the leader of their group.

Bjorn had been separated from the group and was fighting off a great amount of enemies by himself. It wasn't until Bjorn saw no other way to deal with the situation but to retreat that he noticed an arrow flying directly to where his neck was. Bjorn was too slow to dodge but that wasn't necessary as he saw a sword swiftly cutting the arrow in half. Looking up he realized the owner of said sword was none other than Askeladd, making the enemies stand back when they recognized him. 

It wasn't like time magically slowed down, the surprise from Askeladd doing that almost made it seem that way though. Bjorn could've sworn his leader was someone who was ready to leave anyone who couldn't keep up behind. The only thing Bjorn could do was stare dumbly as the smug bastard winked at him and said "Good thing I made it in time otherwise you wouldn't be looking too hot right now."

They were able to kill the enemy group fairly easily, resulting in Bjorn only having minor injuries. For some reason, he was unable to take his eyes off his leader's back the whole way back to the rest of the crew.

A cold wind swept up through Bjorn's shirt, the icy chill reminding him how cold winter nights were here. Truth be told, before today he never really stopped to think what was the deal with Askeladd. Most of the time, the guy looked like he didn't take anything seriously, and didn't seem to care about anyone but himself. On top of all that, he almost never took off the weird looking roman armor.

On the other hand, he was a great leader who knew what his men wanted, besides always crafting plans upon plans for future missions. Askeladd also looked so clean and kept with his gold hair and physique, he could pass as royalty.

A few years had passed since he had met Askeladd, but more often than not these days he kept discovering more about him. It's not like he looked for new things regarding Askeladd every chance he got. It just so happened that whenever he saw him doing something unusual, it automatically saved itself in Bjorn's memory. For example, Bjorn knew that Askeladd hated eating strawberries, and he was always the one who kept guard first when they stayed at a new place. The most notable one before today was that although barely noticeable, he got dimples when smiling while in a really good mood.

Then today happened, making it even harder to grasp exactly what was Askeladd's true character. Maybe it was pointless to try and figure him out, the probability of succeeding this soon weren't high at all. Bjorn frantically passed a hand through his hair giving up on the topic for now. 

"What's got you thinking so hard? That's unusual" a voice called out from next to him.

Speaking of the devil, that voice belonged to the same person he was just racking his brain for seconds ago. Askeladd was standing close enough to Bjorn that he could touch him if he stretched his arm in his direction. 

"Are you saying I'm dumb? I'll have you know I do think about various things when there's no one interrupting me" Bjorn retorted.

"Me? No, I would never. It's just that you're usually more of an action before thought kind of man" Askeladd said with a self satisfied smile. 

"Well, I guess some of us also have our share of surprises too. So, what brought you out here instead of resting with everyone else?" Bjorn inquisitively observed.

"I also had things to think about, like how it's going to be rough to travel in this weather. We might have to stay here for a few days, there's an acceptable amount of food for all of us so it might be fine" Askeladd looked straight at the house, it wasn't anything too fancy but it would do.

The moonlight illuminated Askeladd's features at just the right angle, giving them an ethereal elegance to them. That caught Bjorn's attention nevertheless, he managed to stop himself from staring. 

"As long as we're able to warm ourselves with some campfire inside the house, there will be no trouble. It's not like you to worry about a minor inconvenience, Askeladd." 

"It's not that, it will take a lot more than bad weather to make me worried. Can't have you underestimating my strategy prowess now. Thought you knew me better than that by now, you hurt me deeply" Askeladd clutches at his chest in an exaggerated manner. 

Bjorn did know him better, regardless he wished he knew him a lot more than the other would probably be more comfortable to share. He preferred to keep these intentions to himself.

"I do, so stop acting all dramatic. It's fine if you're not gonna tell me what really got you uneasy. Just know that everyone here considers you a man worth following. So yeah, you don't have to solve everything on your own, you have us" Bjorn said diffidently. 

"Oh Bjorn I didn't know you had me in such high regard, come here" Askeladd was descending to Bjorn's eye level with his arms spread out. 

Of course, Bjorn did the sensible thing of pushing Askeladd away with his foot using the right force to not make him fall. 

"I was joking, I was joking. I'll keep that in mind, it does feel good to hear that once in a while" Askeladd looked at Bjorn with something akin to gratitude. 

The blonde man patted Bjorn's shoulder twice, it was brief as all hell yet that spot turned warm instantly in response to the light touch. Askeladd extended his hand to help Bjorn up, the latter just stared confusedly at the hand. 

"C'mon let's go inside, I'm freezing my ass off with all this snow everywhere" Askeladd offered.

Bjorn wordlessly decided to take the hand of his boss in order to stand up. The grip was firm, Bjorn was able to feel the roughness of it from Askeladd using his sword too much. After he let go of Askeladd's hand, the itch to reach out and take it again surfaced. Instead, he used his hands to shake the snow of his lower back side. 

They started walking towards the house eager to get away from the cold. Especially Bjorn, after spending around half an hour in the same near freezing spot. 

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. I found this after the battle today, one of the guys told me it can be pretty useful in those kind of situations. So just use it when you're cornered by yourself or need a boost against someone especially strong" Askeladd handed him a big looking mushroom. "It's a berserker mushroom, you'll lose your sanity in exchange for enhanced physical strength in a short period of time."

"Okay" Bjorn closed his hand around it. He would have to be careful when the time came to use it. 

"After all, I won't be there every time you need saving" Askeladd continued with a sneer.

"You don't need to tell me twice. I'll make good use of it, so you don't get nervous for my well being" Bjorn teased. 

"Seems like someone has learned to make jokes." 

"I wonder where I could've learned something like that" Bjorn smiled faintly.

Even if Askeladd was an enigma, Bjorn could live with that for the moment. Be that as it may, he was sure he would have a long time to solve the puzzle that was Askeladd.

\----------  
"I'm telling you, blonde women are the best looking ones!" Torgrim exclaimed. 

"You're so wrong, obviously brunettes are always better" Atli tenaciously retaliated. 

"Let's settle this right now, to be sure. Bjorn, which type do you think is the hottest?" 

The two brothers looked up to where Bjorn was riding his horse alongside them. The group had been walking for almost half a day now, so it was no wonder the conversation had devolved to this. Now they were trying to involve him too, they wouldn't stop pestering him if he didn't participate. 

"It doesn't really matter to me, I guess the one you personally like is best? It's not like appearance lets you know their personality or how good they are at sex" Bjorn said absentmindedly. 

"Maybe you're right, but that wasn't the question. Just tell us who has the best option out of the two of us" Torgrim whined. 

"Yeah yeah, Bjorn just say one of the two. Gotta play along, man" Atli agreed with his brother, both of them nodded in unison. 

Bjorn sighed, and started to actually think what to respond. It's not like he cared about the answer, he never thought he had a preference for something that insignificant. His eyes inevitably wandered off to a certain sun colored hair at the front of their group. Askeladd was busy bothering Thorfinn about whatever it was that he needed him to help with for the next village raid. Having raised his hands in mocking fear at something threatening Thorfinn said, Askeladd lazily smiled at the kid. 

"If I have to say one of the two, then definitely blonde" Bjorn finally said.

Atli and Torgrim payed attention to him, after they had stopped discussing with each other again. Hearing that Torgrim let out a loud "Hah, I knew I was right" looking proud of himself. 

Atli begrudgingly accepting his defeat, tried to move onto a different topic to stop his brother's loud celebration. Bjorn simply shrugged, hoping they would forget to include him in the future of the conversation. 

"But man, how much are we gonna have to keep walking? I hope we get to rest when the day is over. My feet are starting to really ache" Atli said shielding his eyes from the sun. 

"Who knows with Askeladd, I can never tell how he plans stuff. We gotta do what we gotta do, I guess. How about you go ask him if it's gonna be long before we stop to rest, Bjorn?" Torgrim proposed.

"Why do I have to do it? You're the ones that want to know. It's not like he'll punch you if you go to him with a genuine question."

"I didn't say he would, it's just you know. You're basically the closest person to him we know here and being the second in command has to give you some privileges"

"It's not like Askeladd has come out and said he considers me his second in command. Besides there's also Thorfinn…" Bjorn trailed off sounding unsure. Both brothers looked at him skeptically, as if they're sure he's just denying something very obvious. 

"I'm sure that just because I'm the one who always- nevermind. Fine, I'll go ask. Anything else you guys want?" Bjorn resigned himself. 

"An unlimited supply of booze" Torgrim sarcastically replied. 

"Sure, that'll happen when Thor descends from Asgard and helps us fight" Bjorn joked in return.

Bjorn went to the front where Askeladd was riding his own horse, looking straight ahead. Askeladd noticed Bjorn the moment he entered his field of vision, the black haired man felt the undivided attention on him. 

"The guys want to know how much longer we're going to keep travelling before we can rest." 

"You can tell them it won't be for long, we'll take a break in a few hours to have dinner" Askeladd informed him. In a lower voice he added, "They've really gotten you as their spokesperson, heh."

"They have, and it's annoying. I can understand the ones who haven't joined for long but the others don't have a good reason to not approach you themselves. It's not like you're that intimidating, you're easily the easiest to talk with out of this whole bunch" Bjorn complained sighing. Askeladd raised an eyebrow and his eyes partially softened. 

"See it like this, on the bright side you get to spend more quality time with yours truly" Askeladd smirked. 

"Yeah right, who even says that about themselves. Oh maybe they think your beard is too lame so they don't want to see you and slip up making you aware that's what it is" Bjorn tried his best to sound awfully serious.

"What? My beard is not lame, of all people to insinuate it, I never expected it to be you. Besides, you've been putting yours in a braid recently, definitely not one to talk" Askeladd pointed out resisting the urge to laugh. 

"I do it out of necessity, by putting it in a braid it doesn't tangle and get too dirty."

"Just trim it. That way you don't have to worry about it." 

"And risk it looking like yours? I'd rather not" Bjorn felt a smile treacherously forming in his own face.

"Fine, you win. I've gotten used to it, so I wouldn't want you to trim it" Askeladd genuinely concluded. 

Both of them kept their amicable back and forth, making Bjorn unaware of the way almost everyone else was looking at them. The men listening to their interactions weren't sure about the nature of the relationship between the two of them.

What they knew was they couldn't think of anyone who belonged by Askeladd's side, and vice versa better than the person who was presently there. They just wished Bjorn would caught on faster. That way they wouldn't have to deal with the odd mating dance that led nowhere. 

Meanwhile, Bjorn seemed to float in the vast blue skies that were Askeladd's eyes. The time to stop their trip for now had arrived, yet Bjorn felt like only a few minutes had passed since he started talking to Askeladd. Getting down from his horse, he faintly remembered that their talk started on something specific but couldn't recall the details of it. He'd ask Torgrim about it later, he took one last look at Askeladd before heading to the forest to hunt his dinner. 

\----------  
It had been about seven years since Thorfinn had been tagging along with them. Bjorn didn't really mind the kid, he mostly kept to himself and didn't get in anyone's face who wasn't Askeladd. Unless he was provoked, he would stay by the side sulking on his own. Unless Askeladd told him to do something in exchange for the chance of a duel. Everyone in the crew knew too well why Thorfinn held a grudge against Askeladd, interacting as little as possible with the rest. In turn, they treated him as friendly as they could and respected his space.

No one really disliked Thorfinn, regardless of his threats to kill their leader. Most believed that he wouldn't be able to go through with it as the years passed. At this point, killing Askeladd had become Thorfinn's main purpose in life. If he ever did it, crushing emptiness would probably swallow any previous feelings of revenge. Something practical about Thorfinn was that his actions were fairly predictable, making it easy for Bjorn to deal with him.

Being the one to accompany Thorfinn to scout an enemy camp was favourable, for the most part. Bjorn could just leave most of the tedious work to him. It wasn't that Thorfinn hadn't been sent to secure a place to raid before, but this was slightly different. He had to convince the people in charge that the crew would help them fight the town south to them. So Bjorn was sent to make sure he didn't mess up. 

Bjorn waited outside the tent where Thorfinn was negotiating with the leader of the army they were supposedly allying with. No point in entering if he couldn't understand the other leader's language.

After ten minutes of being there, Thorfinn came out of the tent looking as exasperated as usual. Things went well then. 

"What did they say?"

"They didn't fully believed that we would be on their side through the whole thing. They even threatened to cut my throat but I said 'the big guy outside will get suspicious if I don't get out in 20 minutes. He'll come in here, killing you all if he sees me dead'. They backed off with a warning to not do anything that even looks like aggressive towards them until we've finished helping them."

"You did well for your first time negotiating with a big group. You're far from being sociable, so no wonder people don't want to trust you at first. Clever move in using me as your shield, defusing heated situations is not my forte. Sounds like a tactic that Askeladd would opt for in the old days, but he'd make me look less emotional in that scenario" Bjorn commented good heartedly.

"Don't compare me to the stupid baldy, we're nothing alike" Thorfinn spit out. 

Sure, he's not. It's not like he's spent more time with Askeladd than with his actual family.

"Don't take it the wrong way, I was complimenting you."

"In that case, don't ever do it that way again. Of course you'd say it like that, considering how you're always looking at him with googly eyes. Gross" Thorfinn stuck out his tongue in pointed disgust.

"No need to phrase it like that, he's just the man I have in highest regard. There's not much to choose from in this day and age, and if he lets me follow him as long as I can then I have no complaints. How would you know what 'googly eyes' are?" Bjorn crossed his arms in disbelief.

Thorfinn opened his mouth to say something but decided to close it. He started again "Whatever, it's not like it's any of my business if the baldy is also blind to how his own second in command sees him." 

The conversation died there, it was a moot point to keep talking about the subject with the brat. Bjorn knew the amount of time he spent thinking about their leader was imbalanced compared to everyone else, but that was his own shit to figure out. Did he really look at Askeladd in such an affectionate way? Damn, he had to be more careful how he acted around the others when he was near him. 

It wasn't his fault that every time Askeladd was in close proximity to him, Bjorn's eyes instinctively wandered off to his frame. His infinite charisma and moderately good looks might have something to do with it. Except that Bjorn's devotion didn't come from something that shallow, above all he admired Askeladd's immense ability to never lose confidence in himself. The amount of years they had known each other were piling up, so the sense of familiarity between them was naturally deeper than with anyone else. 

After signaling the others with a flaming arrow across the sky, he and Thorfinn waited for the others in their own tents. Without waiting for them to arrive, Thorfinn readily fell asleep the instant his head touched the ground. Bjorn waited once they were all there to do the same, he opened the entrance to his own tent just big enough for his head to pop out.

His eyes found Askeladd after a few seconds of looking, he seemed sharp and nonchalant as always. Bjorn started to move fully inside his tent when the object of his attention turned his face towards him. 

"Yo Bjorn, you still awake?" Askeladd got closer, placing one knee in the ground to look at Bjorn straight in the eyes. 

"Yeah, I wanted to see whether everyone was back" Bjorn averted his gaze pretending he was overtly interested in where everyone else was.

"Good job today keeping an eye on Thorfinn. I'll tell him later that he can do the next one by himself."

"You can say that you didn't want anything too worrisome happening to him" Bjorn said cheekily. 

"I won't, because it's not true. I just find him to be more useful alive, that's all" Askeladd obstinately denied it.

"If you say so."

As he got up he passed one hand through Bjorn's hair. Askeladd began walking away, not waiting for Bjorn's reaction and waved him a lackadaisical goodbye. The dark haired man smiled softly shaking his head slightly, laying down inside his tent. 

It wasn't also Bjorn's fault that he found the way Askeladd cared in his own way of the few people he deemed worthy of his concern so reassuring. The only thing he could do for now was hope that he was one of them, with that thought he fell asleep. His own hand instinctively resting on his head. 

\----------

It was that time of year again, they had come back to their home village for the winter. Everyone was settling their belongings in their designated houses, most had to share because there weren't enough. The familiarity made Bjorn felt content to be back, at least having a place that the crew was welcomed never felt misplaced. 

A chorus of excited voices chanting a too familiar name drew his attention. It was the pack of groupies that always were after Askeladd's recognition as potential wives. Even though he should be used to it by now, the annoyance was fairly hard to ignore. Maybe it had something to do with Askeladd actually humoring them more than normal. 

It was clear that those women didn't really know Askeladd and only cared about his riches and the fact he lead a strong group of vikings. None of them even had half the strong connection that Bjorn shared with him nor they tried to understand his complexities. That said, it didn't stop Bjorn from getting fed up over the stupid sight. Seeing one of them whisper something to Askeladd which made him laugh, was the last straw. Bjorn walked away, he had enough. His pretty good mood just had to be soured by Askeladd's dumb fans. 

He stormed off to what would be his sleeping arrangement for the next two months. Due to that, Bjorn missed Askeladd looking his way, interested in his movements. 

Night had already fallen, it had felt like years had passed until the sky was tinted with darkness. Bjorn was turning in his bed, he was wide awake not knowing what to do with the unwanted images in his head. His mind kept replaying the scenes of Askeladd openly flirting with all those women, especially the last one. It wasn't like Askeladd didn't laugh with a lot of people, it was just that it usually didn't look that intimate. Like only him and that woman were allowed to know what was so funny, it felt wrong. That level of closeness was only reserved for Bjorn. 

At this rate, he wasn't going to be able to sleep any time soon. He got up, unrested he decided to go for a late night walk to organize his thoughts. Bjorn left his coat inside the house seeing as it was moderately warm. He started walking around aimlessly, trying to understand why something so trivial was so irritating. 

Askeladd sleeping with whoever he wanted had never bothered Bjorn in the past, because their connection felt special somehow. Regardless of who Askeladd wanted to spend the night with, he would always end up going to Bjorn to talk about anything and everything. No matter what Askeladd wanted, Bjorn would always be the first one to say yes to it. No matter the circumstances, Askeladd's side was the place Bjorn would always go to with no hesitation.

Certainly at some point, Bjorn had begun wanting to be the person Askeladd yearned for and spend the most time thinking about. It was foolish, he knew it yet he couldn't help but want to be more than Askeladd's friend. He wished this kind of thing was as simple as killing, why feelings had to be so complicated? When had he become this sentimental? Man, he was getting old.

He hated to admit it, but he had been feeling jealous the whole day. It was his cowardice that hadn't let him recognize it. Bjorn had let unnecessary feelings to come out, and in front of the person that had caused them. To be honest, there was a big chance that Askeladd hadn't even noticed his mental turmoil. Regardless of what he felt, he didn't have the right to demand anything more from his leader. 

Things would just go as they always did, it's not like he was confident enough to tell Askeladd. Bjorn didn't want to get his hopes up, so he wasn't planning to do anything. Nothing good would come out of making things awkward with the person he was closest to, not really.

Tiredly passing a hand through his face, he was very unsure how to act regarding this knowledge. Before realizing it, he had arrived back to the house he was staying. To his utmost surprise, Askeladd was standing in front of the door, his eyes fixed on the moon. 

Bjorn stepped on a tree branch, loudly enough for Askeladd to notice him. Askeladd wanting to talk to him alone wasn't rare, but Bjorn still wasn't really in the most cheerful of moods right now. 

"You couldn't sleep either?" Bjorn started.

"Only got an hour, before I woke up again" Askeladd paused briefly taking a good look at Bjorn. The brunette tilted his head waiting for a follow up. 

"Have you ever thought of settling down and having a family"? Askeladd added.

Bjorn could tell the other man was attentively gauging his reaction. Despite that, Bjorn raised one eyebrow slightly. That came out a little out of left field. Why would he ask that? Askeladd had never shown particular interest in that part of Bjorn's life. He played it cool as best as he could.

"You know me, I don't care about that stuff. I like killing, and I belong in the battlefield. What about you?" Bjorn responded.

Askeladd positioned his hands to rest on his hips, his expression not betraying his intentions.There was a stiffness to his movements, it was barely apparent but it was there. Bjorn pretended not to notice. 

"I'm the same as you, this is the place where I'm the most comfortable. Truth is, I'm not getting any younger. Maybe sooner than I like to think, Thorfinn will be able to win a duel against me." Askeladd pondered aloud. 

"You're selling yourself short. Sure, Thorfinn has become a capable fighter through the years. You knew that could happen when you let him into our ship the day after he swore revenge for the death of his father" Bjorn walked to stand next to Askeladd. He patted the blonde man's back as reassurance, "You mean a lot more to the kid than you may sometimes think."

"That could be true, but that's still a big possibility. If I die by his hand one day, I would be okay with that. If that ever happens, try not to be mad with Thorfinn and allow him to leave the viking life if he wants"

"That's not gonna happen, Thorfinn depends on you too much. And who says I'll still be alive by then" Bjorn avoided looking at Askeladd. He didn't like to think about that possible outcome. About a future where Askeladd was no longer with him.

"It's the request from a future dying man, have some mercy" Askeladd insisted. 

"Fine, I'll do that. And don't say dying man, you don't know that" Bjorn berated him

"We all die eventually of something, Bjorn."

They stayed silent for a few minutes, staring at the lonely moon barren of any stars around it. If it was anyone else, this would be weird but with Askeladd it was always a comfortable silence. Bjorn didn't need to worry about filling the empty space with mindless chatter, both of them knew it was needless. If it was up to Bjorn, they would just stay there until the sun rose and daily routine had to take its course.

Askeladd was the first to break the moment.

"Well, you better get some sleep. Don't think that just because we're not traveling that we won't be working" Askeladd announced energetically.

"Got it, boss. You shouldn't stay awake too long making plans for the rest of fall, you'll have time for that these next few days" Bjorn graciously answered back. 

The taller man in the middle of turning around to open the door, he felt Askeladd's hand grab his wrist. His mind was racing, telling him to shake off his hand and continue leaving. But something else was telling him to wait and see what would happen if he stayed. 

Bjorn looked down to where Askeladd's face was, knowing full well he wasn't prepared for what would come next. Next thing he knew, a pair of lips were making contact with his own. One hand landed on his waist while the other was confidently caressing his cheek. Brown eyes were wide in shock not being able to fully process what was happening. All of Bjorn's muscles were tense, not knowing how to react. 

In an instant, the other man tried to deepen the kiss by slowly introducing his tongue into Bjorn's mouth which the latter automatically allowed. That helped Bjorn's body to relax greatly, his hands explored blonde hair with unprecedented fervor. He began returning the kiss with the same level of fierceness, Bjorn felt the other's immense smile because of this.

Bjorn's back hit the door with an audible thud, resulting in the brunette groaning in pleasure. That got the two men to separate, Bjorn desperately gasped for air. Askeladd had really kissed him? Had he actually died already and gone to Valhalla? That seemed like the logical explanation. It was hard to tell due to the lack of lighting, but he could swear Askeladd's eyes were almost all pupil. 

Askeladd still had the gall to put a hand in Bjorn's shoulder and whisper in his ear "this was the reason I couldn't sleep" while having a shit eating grin. The only thing to do was stare speechless as Askeladd walked away, leaving Bjorn as flustered like never before. 

To be frank, he had liked kissing Askeladd and wished it lasted longer. But now he was even more confused as how to act around him from now on. It would be a big gamble, one that he intended to win.

\---------

Walking through a sea of injured people, Bjorn continued forward. The last battle had been rough on the group, there had been numerous losses. The jomsvikings had been no easy opponents, thankfully enough damage was done to them that the crew was able to retreat. Now they were resting, tending to their injuries although unfortunately some had to be put down.

That kind of sight didn't get any less grim no matter how many times he experienced it. Doing his best to drown out the cries of pain and faces with nothing but despair, he entered a spacious tent. Inside it, Askeladd laid in a makeshift bed made out of old sheets and unusable clothes. He had his eyes closed with his arms behind his head, but what Bjorn's eyes got locked unto was the broken leg. 

It could be said, Askeladd chew a bit more than he could swallow for once and it wasn't nice to see. It wasn't a life threatening injury, yet it caused some heavy anxiety all the same. Bjorn was so used to seeing Askeladd as incredibly strong and intelligent. The occasional fall truly reminded him he was still human. He was no unreachable demigod residing among men, but just a very talented man who could make mistakes like the rest of them. 

That didn't mean it hadn't worried Bjorn like hell when he saw Askeladd not being able to stand up. His current pain betrayed the usual slyl and composed demeanor. Bjorn helped his friend by supporting his weight placing his arm in the other's waist and letting Askeladd's arm go around his neck. Their only doctor they had at their disposal had been able to splint the broken leg with a solid piece of shield wood. It would be some long weeks, but it would heal cleanly. That's all Bjorn could hope for at the moment. 

Adding this to the fact that it had been one month since the kiss, it didn't make things easier. They hadn't really had time to be alone together to discuss what that meant for their relationship. There was also that Askeladd hadn't tried to initiate anything since that either, giving Bjorn more doubts about the whole thing. The blonde had seemed more than willing to continue, then why? Was it because he deemed it a hassle to sneak at night? Did he regret doing that with Bjorn at all? 

There was no point in mulling over possibilities that had no bases. Bjorn decided to bring up the subject as soon as he could. As if on cue, Askeladd's eyelid twitch, informing him of something that he should've already known. He lifted his foot from his sitting position to give Askeladd's healthy leg a nudge.

"I know you're awake, can't keep pretending anymore."

"Well, I was able to fool you for a few minutes. Took you longer to realize than I thought" Askeladd childishly snickered. He had his broken leg propped up high in a bag full of cleaning rags."Shame on you for kicking someone as injured as me."

"I didn't kick you, and it wasn't even in your injured leg. You're always such a drama king, one of these days I'm gonna take you seriously and you won't like it"

"You know I love some good theatrics, nothing inherently wrong with that. Besides you prefer me this way, you're unable to pass a chance to play along" Askeladd wiggled his eyebrows up and down

Passing a hand through his face, Bjorn tried to hide a playful smile."Maybe I would if it made you less cocky." 

"If you say so" Askeladd said amused.

This was one of those moments where Bjorn could be doing anything and he would feel at peace because he was close to Askeladd. Confronting Askeladd about the nature of their relationship could change it forever for the worse, but that's a risk he was willing to take. If he was able to get to know Askeladd even more in ways that weren't possible before, it was worth it.

"Say Askeladd, why did you kiss me back in our village?" Bjorn's heart was pounding crazily in anticipation.

It was now Askeladd's turn to look somewhat taken aback. "Isn't it obvious?"

Bjorn just kept staring, not quite getting what he meant. Askeladd seemed uncharacteristically fidgety, not quite knowing what to do with his hands. 

"You're really gonna make me say it?" 

"Go ahead, I just wanna know and see if what I think is correct" Bjorn answered in an attempt to not put all his emotions in display.

"Bjorn, do you know what's an owl's mating behavior?"

That felt like a weird tangent, but Bjorn shook his head slowly. He intended to listen to what Askeladd had to say, just like always.

"For the most part owls are very isolated creatures. That all changes as spring approaches though because that is when mating can occur. With some species of owls, they will have the same mate for life. They can be domesticated, and play friendly but their true nature of living to hunt won't go away. It's only for their mates that they won't be afraid of acting as hunters to protect them and support them."

There was a pause, Askeladd scratched his own beard. It was clear he wasn't used to being honest about his true feelings. Bjorn was starting to have an idea about where he was going, but interrupting would've been inconsiderate.

"What I'm trying to say is that it might seem that I'm friendly and easygoing with everyone in our group. But it's always been one person that I gave a shit about what they thought of me. I could act however around that person and they would accept me regardless. That same person was the one who didn't hesitate to be the first in joining me as a reckless twenty one year old to create a group of misfit pirates. Having that person by my side all this years has been a well appreciated anchor, following my every order and whim" Askeladd positioned his hands below his chin studying Bjorn's reaction. 

At some point, Bjorn's jaw had gone agape. There was so much information to process. He couldn't remember the last time Askeladd had openly discussed something this intimate with him. 

"You didn't really made it easy to figure all that out, it would've saved me a good while of stress. I also want to say that it's only with you that I feel the most comfortable. Just a few words from you and I'll feel at ease, ready to face anything as long as you're there with me. Being your friend has been the greatest honor of my life. Being your confidant, even knowing fairly little from your past just makes me all the more curious about you as a person. But from a point onwards, I wanted to be even more to you, if you let me" Bjorn gazed intently at Askeladd to see if his response was enough. 

Turning his face to look upward, Askeladd's expression was impossible to figure out. What Bjorn managed to catch, was the most genuine smile he'd ever seen on him tentatively surfacing. When the other man gazed back, he had a subdued grin with a playful glint in his eyes.

"Oh? And who said you were the person I was referring to?"

"Askeladd" Bjorn glared at him.

"Okay okay, I just couldn't help myself."

"Wait, so that means you were flirting with me all this time?" Bjorn asked embarrassed of this late discovery.

Askeladd let out a hearty laugh at that."Bjorn, just when I thought you couldn't be any more dense. Come here" he motioned at Bjorn to come closer.

The taller man did as told, Askeladd grabbed him by the collar and kissed him. This time it lasted slightly longer but it was less hungry too. Instead of the desperation from last time, there was something soothing about it. Askeladd caressed Bjorn's thigh, rubbing circles with his thumb. Bjorn responded in kind, by placing his hand on the back of Askeladd's neck and the other one in his shoulder. Bjorn couldn't ever imagine this getting old, kissing Askeladd just felt so right. It was as if the two of them had been made to fit perfectly with each other. 

The kiss ended, mainly due to the uncomfortable position between a crouched Bjorn and Askeladd laying down. He could get used to doing this any time he could. 

A voice announced right outside of the tent they were coming in. Bjorn got up in time to see Thorfinn, he must've sensed something was different. The youngest member of the group kept shifting his eyes between Askeladd and Bjorn. Askeladd just shrugged, while Bjorn simultaneously rolled his eyes not wanting to keep Thorfinn in the dark. The brunette simply raised a thumbs up and pointed to himself and Askeladd with it. The teenager's eyes filled with understanding, a nod was the only thing he did in acknowledgment.

"I'll see you around, Askeladd" Bjorn moved to get out of the tent. "Don't wanna steal more of your time and don't get too pissed off at him, Thorfinn. His broken leg will heal soon enough for you to duel him again."

"I know that" Thorfinn responded annoyed.

Right after getting out from the tent, Bjorn was able to hear one more thing. 'About time this happened, it was getting tiring to see you guys dancing around like idiots. Torgrim and the others will be overjoyed to win the bet.'. Those assholes. Seemed like he wasn't the only one to win a satisfying gamble.

\---------

They were surrounded, everyone else in the group had betrayed them. Bjorn, Askeladd and Thorfinn were back to back forming a circle to cover each other's rear. In no time, both Bjorn and Thorfinn had killed most of them. His shortest comrade could barely stand after all that. Bjorn turned around to see how Askeladd was doing, that had been a mistake. He was bleeding profusely on the ground, some arrows had pierced his guts and kept going all the way to his feet. 

Everything turned white in that instant, Bjorn couldn't see clearly. This couldn't be happening, it wasn't possible. Fury and grief were hitting him with the weight of a thousand axes. It was then, he heard Askeladd's voice calling out to him. 

"Bjorn, it's your fault I'm like this. You should've done all you could to follow my orders" 

"I know, but don't go. There's still a lot of things I wanted to do and see with you. I know a dumb ass like me wasn't enough for you but I need you" Bjorn cried out, helpless to this sight.

"It's a little late for that, you should've..thought about that when...you got sure you knew all about me" Askeladd's eyes lost all sign of life after that. 

Bjorn awoke with a jolt, breathing heavily as he slowly realized where he was. Askeladd's hand was resting over Bjorn's bare chest, and his face seemed to be undisturbed by the brunette's sudden movement. Sweat had formed all over Bjorn's face, his hands were trembling ever so slightly. Heart still pounding wildly in his chest, he tried to focus on Askeladd's own chest moving up and down. Carefully he pushed himself up into a sitting position making sure to move Askeladd's hand to an empty spot on the bed. He looked around the room once, then twice. 

It had just been a nightmare, terribly chilling and vivid but not real all the same. Covering his face, he took deep breaths in efforts to calm himself. He kept repeating to himself 'Askeladd would never say that to me, there's no basis to think he does. Stop thinking of grim impossibilities'. A hand touched his lower back, Bjorn whipped his head so fast it hurt his neck. 

"Bjorn? What are you doing up?" Askeladd asked with a groggy tone to his voice.

"Sorry, did I wake you up? It's just, I had a stupid nightmare that felt way too real"

The blonde man just kept his eyes in Bjorn, encouraging him to continue but not pushing it. Focused on the relaxing feeling that Askeladd's hand massaging his back gave him. Bjorn chose to express his worries.

"Everyone on the crew had turned on us, only you, me and Thorfinn were up against them. You were injured really badly and started blaming me. I kept begging you to stay but you didn't want to listen and told me I stopped considering what was best for you. It was scary and I didn't know what to do but be overwhelmed by all types of emotions. That's when I woke up" Bjorn stared at his own hands, the trembling had been subdued.

"Bjorn, remember when you asked me why did I kissed you the first time?"

"How could I forget? Sure, it's been two years since then. There's still no way something that important wouldn't still be on my mind" Bjorn answered, curious to hear what Askeladd would say next.

"All the things I said back then, I still firmly think the same. You're the one that keeps me confident in the most important choices I make. It's only with you, I feel comfortable enough to talk about personal things that make who I am. It's because of you that I feel like someone truly knows me and would never try to change me. You underestimate your influence but without you I wouldn't be as happy as I am now" Askeladd finished with an incredibly soft voice. 

"Thank you, your actions make me aware of that all the time. But I still need to hear it once in a while, it really keeps me going" Bjorn smiled from ear to ear. 

Intertwining their hands together, the pair laid back down. Bjorn considered himself to be the luckiest bastard in the whole world, especially in moments like this. Askeladd kissed Bjorn's hand with all the care he could muster. He covered both of them with the blanket a little more, the cold of the night seeping in. 

"Good night, Bjorn. Have better dreams, preferably one that will make you heart race in a different way" Askeladd teased.

"Of course you'd say that, wait for that later" Bjorn gently smiled.

Closing his eyes once more, Bjorn succumbed to sleep. The dream was filled with warmth, affection and homeliness. He could see both himself and Askeladd in their old age sitting down outside of a rough looking house. Their hands were linked, with their free hand were waving hello to an adult Thorfinn bringing food to them. 

It was totally different to how Bjorn would've envisioned their future long ago. But now there was only overflowing happiness over being safe and sound with the person he loved.

**Author's Note:**

> This story was actually only going to be the first segment with both of them in the snow but I kept getting new ideas to enlarge the story and it turned out like this. The characters are way softer than in canon but in my defense the show its already grim enough so I wanted this to be as lighthearted as possible. In this story, Askeladd's group never met Thorkell and Canute so thats why its canon divergence, as Askeladd never felt the need here to take so much risks to make someone else king here. Also, I know so little about this period of history so I was as vague as possible with those kinds of details. Thanks so much for reading and feel free to comment :)


End file.
